User Actions

Darned Good Boneless Short Ribs

I love short ribs, but I've always been a braising person, convinced that you couldn't just grill a short rib and make it wonderful to eat. While writing this book I became obsessed with creating a simple, grilled boneless short rib recipe. The key is to trim the connective tissue that holds the bone to the meat. I found that often when you buy boneless short ribs, this tissue is still there, and it's tougher than a pair of Marine boots that have marched across Iraq. After that adjustment it's a matter of being patient at the grill. You want them nicely caramelized but you don't want to overcook them. They need to be pink inside to be tender enough to eat and enjoy. Serve with pinto beans cooked with garlic and cilantro or atop grits or mashed potatoes.

Advertisements

Preparation

1. In a medium bowl and blend together both sugars, the paprika, salt, pepper, granulated onion, and cayenne. Sprinkle the short rib pieces liberally with this mixture until coated on all sides. Let sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

2. Oil the grill racks. Preheat your grill using all burners set on high and with the lid closed for 10 to 12 minutes.

3. Place the beef ribs on the grill, close the lid, and reduce the heat to medium. Turn the ribs every 3 to 5 minutes or so, so that every side gets slightly caramelized, 15 to 20 minutes total. (If your short rib pieces are small, it won't take quite this long.) The ribs should yield easily to the touch, not unlike a medium-rare steak or the way the tip of your nose feels. Reduce the heat a little more and brush the ribs with the sauce. Cover the grill and let cook for a minute or two for the sauce to set up, and then continue to turn and brush until all sides of the ribs have been glazed. Remove to a platter and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes, covered with foil. Serve.

In the Kitchen

The seasoning mixture or rub makes more than you will need for this recipe, and its fabulous sprinkled over beef brisket, pork chops, pork tenderloins, or, of course, pork ribs. Store the mixture in an airtight container for up to 2 months.

Recent Reviews

Not a big fan of this recipe - I was so excited for it but did not like the taste of the finished product at all. I only had "regular" paprika which I think is sweet paprika so that may have been part of my problem - I thought there was too much paprika and way too much sugar - it was way to sweet! Also my pieces were smaller than I would have liked after trying to trim off the connective tissue, so while I think it helps make the meat tender i'm not sure its worth all the loss in meat and the smaller pieces you end up with. I'll stick to braising and if I do try that recipe again I'll use less than half the paprika and half the sugar too.

finnm from TN /

Flag if Inappropriate

Followed recipe; meat was (very) tough and chewy. Meat was "choice" and I deboned and removed tough connective tissue. I was very careful (I have been using gas and charcoal bbqs for many years) but to no avail. I have braised and baked, finished under broiler and on gas grill with smoke and had good luck; but this recipe was hard to chew. Costco's meats are corn-finished, GMO fed, feed-lot cattle - they are not prime. Wouldn't use them under any circumstances. Bad recipe...sorry.

lhe2 from Northern California /

Flag if Inappropriate

Everyone loved it. I was also nervous about the cooking time. I pulled it off direct heat after the 12 minutes of flipping and put BBQ sauce on and put it on indirect heat for another 5 mintues...my pieces were really thick, 2-3" and I was registering the temp at 130 initially. After the extra 5 min. they were perfect. the dry rub is perfect for this too.

tedkat from Oakland, CA /

Flag if Inappropriate

Yep. I don't know if it was the dry rub, the Virginia Pruitt sauce, or the combination of the two, but my girlfriend and I both though this was the best BBQ we've had. Will definitely make again.

wafflechip from Toledo, OH /

Flag if Inappropriate

Delicious..the last part of recipe was not clear on how much time to do the finishing, and I was worried I undercooked them. But with a total grilling time of only 15 minutes, these were so yummy! goodbye 3 hr rib projects..